Are Masks Effective Against the Coronavirus Disease?
Are masks effective against the coronavirus disease?
The answer depends on who wears them and the environment in which they’re used. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend that everyone wear a cloth face covering (face mask) when in public to reduce COVID-19 spread, including healthcare workers and long-term care residents; however, local authorities must set their own requirements.
One advantage of wearing a mask is that it shields those around you from getting infected, thus decreasing the risk of spreading COVID-19 to others. However, remember that COVID-19 can spread from those without symptoms, so taking precautions when in an elevated risk situation is still recommended to minimize transmission.
As a rule of thumb, try to maintain social distance by standing at least 6 feet away from other people and not touching your face. However, this may not always be possible, especially if your job requires close contact with others or you need to travel frequently.
Additionally, try to stay out of the sun as much as possible and wash your hands frequently – these are both essential methods for preventing germ spread. When sick, avoid shaking your hands since that can spread germs to others.
Surgical masks can help protect against virus transmission from coughs or sneezes, though they aren’t always as effective as face coverings. Nonetheless, they block large droplets exhaled by people when they breathe or sneeze, helping to slow the spread of infection.
Cloth masks can help prevent the spread of bacteria and other particles caused by coughing or sneezing. Fabric masks such as cotton or terrycloth, for instance, block up to 70% of small respiratory droplets exhaled during coughing and sneezing.
They aren’t as effective as other types of masks, such as three-ply surgical masks, KN95 masks or N95 masks that prevent virus entry into the nose and mouth. Those masks have been tested in laboratories and found to be more successful; therefore they may be suitable for people who aren’t at risk of getting sick or want to limit their exposure to germs.
But the most essential benefit of any type of mask is that it prevents most respiratory droplets you exhale from entering the air or onto surfaces around you. Furthermore, it keeps them from evaporating into smaller ones that could travel further, meaning less risk for ingestion or inhalation by those nearby who aren’t wearing a mask.
Furthermore, wearing a mask reduces the amount of virus that gets into your body or eyes since it cannot pass through pore-sized skin pores. This could explain why some people don’t get as sick when exposed to this virus – even with the best masks.
